These are a Few of My Favorite Things

I am very open when it comes to different genres of music, film, books, and games. There is always at least one thing that I like about each genre. However, like everyone else, I do have my favorites...

Music
Anything with a piano in it gets bumped up on my list. That being said, Jim Steinman is my all time favorite composer and songwriter. Not only does he make what I feel are the best songs period but almost every one of them has piano in it. His solo album, Bad for Good, all of Meat Loaf's albums, Bonnie Tyler and anything else he has done is just amazing. Listen to Tanz der Vampire sometime (my personal all-time favorite musical). He wrote the music for this musical and Michael Kunze wrote the libretto. It is based on a Roman Polanski film entitled The Dance of the Vampires in Europe and The Fearless Vampire Killers here in the States. Even though most of the score is from previous works Steinman has done, they all sound beautiful and fit very well with this musical. It is the fullest sounding musical I have ever heard.

Classical, Oldies, and Classic Rock are my favorite music genres. Rap and Country are my least favorite, although there are some songs in there that I do like. I also enjoy soundtracks to video games and some movies. Along with Jim Steinman, John Williams, Koji Kondo, and Nobuo Uematsu are my favorite composers.

I also enjoy musical theatre. With Tanz der Vampire being my personal favorite, my other favorites include: The Phantom of the Opera, Whistle Down the Wind, Wicked, and RENT.

Movies
There are very few movies that I don't enjoy. They aren't all classics and epic in proportion, but they still entertain. Some of my favorites include: The Lord of the Rings, Rocky Saga, Amadeus, The Dark Knight, Die Hard Saga, Donnie Darko, Ghostbusters, Labyrinth, Pirates of the Caribbean Trilogy, The Notebook, and Wall-E . One of the best cinematic moments was the death scene of Captain Beckett in Pirates 3: At World's End. I would post it but the only videos available are pretty long, so check out this YouTube posting of it (start watching at 4:40 in and go through the end - or just watch the entire thing, haha).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXpoLB4J2is

TV Shows
I don't have too much time for television but there are a few shows I watch. Even though it's a soap opera, Days of our Lives has been fun to watch. I started up in 2003 and while the storyline has gone down some since then it is still a good show. You can get inspiration from anywhere and if a show has been able to stay on the air for 44 years, they have to be doing something right. I prefer shows that have some form of continuous plot (which is one reason why I like Days) so One Tree Hill, 7th Heaven, Gilmore Girls, and Friends are also things I'll watch if I have time.

South Park is another show I will always catch. Matt and Trey do an excellent job of satire. I love to cook, so Iron Chef (both the Japanese and American versions) are something I try to watch as much as I can.

Besides these, I usually just watch Japanese Anime. I used to watch more American cartoons but they have all become episodic and fairly generic. Back in the day I always watched Reboot, Pirates of Dark Water, and The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog. The old-school cartoons are still fun to watch as well (Tom & Jerry, Flintstones, Jestons, etc.). My favorite animes include: Rurouni Kenshin, Trigun, Bleach, Yu Yu Hakusho, Dragon Ball Z, Gundam Wing, Death Note, Neon Genesis Evangelion, and Cowboy Bebop.

Books
I read as much as possible in a variety of genres. My favorites are: The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, The Chronicles of Narnia, Twilight Saga, Day of the Cheetah, Resident Evil Series, Pride and Prejudice, Alice in Wonderland, and Wicked.

Video Games
Finally, we come to the games. I prefer Platform and Action-Adventure games but again I have favorites in every genre. Here is a list of game series I like: Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, Metroid, Kid Icarus, Metal Gear Solid, Castlevania, Devil May Cry, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Mega Man, Resident Evil, Prince of Persia, and God of War.

Other games not in a series I like include: Ikaruga, Chrono Trigger, Super Mario RPG, Raiden, X-Men Arcade, Eternal Darkness, Killer 7, Viewtiful Joe, Shadow of the Colossus, and Zack & Wiki.

I picked up Deadly Creatures for the Wii last week and have been enjoying that so far.

So there is a little taste into my favorites. The next post will show the progress I have done on my Capstone project.

- VashTS